Six Feet Under
by SJJ
Summary: The greatest foe of in the universe stalks Mark and the rest of G-Force
1. The Mechanical Wasp

"Oh dear, I have just had news from Susan. The archaeological dig on Orion Major is  
under attack."  
  
"Yap. yap."  
  
"Yes, 1-Rover-1. They did just recently unearth a temple there. One that seems to contain  
a gianormous unknown power source. What's worse, Security Chief Anderson has been  
overseeing the excavation! Along with Tiny! I hope they are all right!"  
  
"Yap?"  
  
"No 1-Rover-1, I can't go there. And neither can you despite it being your favourite star  
system, Orion - the Dog star!" 7-Zark-7 chuckled to himself.  
  
"Yap yippty yap!"  
  
Zark turned his attention to his control panel and slowly flapped over towards his station.   
"I'm assembling the remainder of G-Force. Let's hope they can get there in time. I have a  
nasty suspicion Zoltar from the planet Spectra is involved! He turned to no one in  
particular and announced. Spectra is a planet in the crab nebula you know. Thousands of  
light years away from Earth!" Zark switched on the Centre Neptune intercom.  
  
"G-Force Commander, assemble your team and prepare for launch."  
The reply came from the G-Force Ready room. Mark's boyish facade materialised on the  
screen.  
  
"That's a big ten Zark, team's assembled and Phoenix is ready to launch."  
  
"Launch when ready commander! And good luck!"  
  
"Yappity yap yap?"  
  
"I'm sure they will be fine 1-Rover-1." The droid sighed. "I just wish they had Tiny with  
them." With almost nervous energy he turned back to the console and monitored the  
launch of the Phoenix. "I'm sure they'll be all right!"  
  
***  
  
Jason's eyes remained steadily fixed on the gravestone. The noise of his car purring  
behind him. How long had he been standing here? Minutes? Hours? Days? There was  
clearly still petrol in the tank if that was anything to go by.  
  
He let his mind play out the ghosts once more. He no longer paid attention to them. It  
was over now. What more was there to think about?   
  
Damn you. How many more people would he have to bury before this was all over?  
  
***  
  
A collective of pride and victorious zeal, Zoltar swaned across the clearing towards his  
captured party. It was a collection of twenty men, most of which were scientists. Scared  
scientists. Two of his best guards held their leader tightly in their grip. Another three  
were holding his big burly companion. A difficult one. He had been a very difficult  
capture. The guards holding this one were all robots. Only their collective superhuman  
strength were enough to hold back the youth. Zoltar studied him for a second. So  
Anderson employed children as bodyguards as well? And the galaxy called him sick!   
  
The sun weighed heavy in the sky creating a purple splatter across the horizon. Beyond  
the clearing from every side spanned out miles of jungle. Zoltar ignored the humidity and  
embraced the adrenaline that was pumping through his body. This was truly his finest  
hour.  
  
"Security Chief Anderson," he taunted. "Tell me, what do you think of my latest creation?"  
  
Anderson turned towards the giant mechanical creature that hovered to the west. It  
loomed above the large temple that protruded from the treetops. The temple had a  
vaguely Incan architecture to it. The building - like the planet - had only been discovered  
very recently.   
  
What lay within this ancient temple was of greater concern to Anderson. Energy beyond imagining. It was that energy that the mechanical wasp was seeking to gain. They had already discovered the temple had some sort of mystic field which was so far preventing the giant wasp from gaining entry.   
  
But for how long?   
  
The wasp continued to attack the temple both physically and with energy, ploughing bolts of liquid beams  
onto the stone while scraping away with it's massive mechanical legs. It was a terrifying  
sight.  
  
"It's obscene," snarled Anderson. "That temple belongs to a sacred race, you have no  
right invading it's secrets in this way!"  
  
Zoltar cackled with glee. Mockingly, he bowed towards his foe. "I am merely doing what  
you intended to do. Why else would you be here? I'm just taking what you Earthlings  
would call a more direct approach!"  
  
Anderson could the sweat and heat playing a battleground upon his forehead. "I am here  
to see if this temple poses a security risk to the Federation. We are here to study it's  
secrets, not steal them!"  
  
Zoltar smirked and turned away, clearly not impressed. Tiny lunged foreword only to be  
pulled back by the androids.   
  
"G-Force will stop you Zoltar - you just wait!"  
  
Zoltar swung around majestically, pleasure swept across his painted lips.  
"Ah, G-Force, yes I have a surprise for them."  
  
Zoltar laughed heartily and the birds fled from the nearby treetops in panic.  
  
***  
  
His stomach ached. He couldn't remember the last time he had ate, but despite his body's  
protests, the thought of food repelled him. He wiped his eyes with his chubby wrist.  
Every day for a week he had come here. Just for a few minutes.   
  
It was as much as he could bare. He wondered if there really was a time when he enjoyed being in G-Force. If so, in now felt like a lifetime ago.   
  
***  
  
Mark grasped onto his seat as the craft lurched to the left. Keyop swung back and despite  
grasping maniacally at thin air, was unable to prevent a fall to the deck.  
  
"Hold her steady Jason!" Mark pleaded.  
  
Jason ignored Mark's glare and continued wrestling with the controls.  
"I'm trying! Space jumps are the big guy's talent. I drive race cars, not spaceships."  
  
Mark turned to Princess who was pulling Keyop back onto his seat. "Any  
communications from the planet? Has Tiny responded?"  
  
"Nothing Commander," replied his female companion. "I don't think he's wearing his  
bracelet."  
  
Mark cursed - how many times would he have to tell Tiny to keep his bracelet on him at  
all times?  
  
"Approaching the planet, Mark." Jason yanked another large lever with a satisfied grunt.  
He leaned back. "Princess, can you zoom onto the site. We need to see what's  
happening!"  
  
The screen lit up. The hideous sight of Zoltar's mechanical wasp filled the screen,  
battling to get into the temple below it.  
  
"What is it?" bleeped Keyop. "Oversized bug."  
  
A flashing light next to Princess caught her attention and she checked her readouts.  
"Commander we have a welcoming committee coming up onto our vector!"  
  
"Friend or foe, Princess?" her leader questioned.  
  
The crimson shape of Colonel Cronus' fighters appeared on the scanner screen. Mark felt  
a twinge of regret, but suppressed it. He checked their distance. Long range, but closing.   
"Team, the cavalry has arrived. Looks like we won't be doing this on our own! Prepare  
for descent Jason!"  
  
***  
  
It wasn't that the wall was interesting. It wasn't as if it had any magical properties. It was  
a wall. Plain and simple. It simply just got in the way of his vision. If it wanted to sit  
there and be looked at, Keyop was fine with that.   
  
He preferred an inactive wall. It didn't bother him. It didn't try and get him out of his  
bed.  
  
It didn't tell him that he should go and visit the grave.   
  
It didn't harass him with doctors.   
  
It didn't shout at him for being heartless.   
  
It didn't spend the nights crying in the adjoining room.  
  
The wall was good like that.  
  
***  
  
The green garbed Spectran ran up to Zoltar and saluted. "G-Force have arrived sir." He  
reported.   
  
Zoltar looked up to the heavens, studying the purple glory. "And the welcoming  
committee?"   
  
"In place, sir."  
  
Zoltar turned away and motioned the guard with a limp flick of his hand. "Good. They may fire at will!"  
  
***  
  
"Mark? MARK!"  
  
"Huh?" Mark shook his head slightly and walked over to Princess. The girl was watching  
him intently. She rose from her seat and touched his arm, her eyes never wavering  
contact with his. "You're worried," she said with a slight smile. "Please tell me what's  
on your mind."  
  
Worried? Mark had to think about this. Am I? Perhaps it was Cronus. Dealing with the  
new Cronus always made him feel uncomfortable. Understandable, but thinking about it,  
she was right Something was bothering him.  
  
"I can tell." She smiled warmly. Keyop made gagging noises behind her. Jason grinned  
from the front seat.  
  
Mark looked at the scanner. They were close now, both the fighters and the Phoenix were  
just above the atmosphere of the planet. "It's unlike Cronus to play a hand so early in the  
game." That was what was bothering him. "Cronus always trained his men to remain in  
the shadows until the last moment." He studied the formation heading towards them.  
Closer. "Spectra must be able to see him and his ships. So why..."  
  
He froze. He looked at Jason. Who stared back in unhealthy mixture of horror and  
understanding.   
  
That was when the first missile tore through the Phoenix's wing.  
  
***  
  
The ship screamed in agony. Metal buckling against metal. Mark slammed against the  
bulkhead holding Princess tightly. "Evasive!" He cried. Letting go of Princess, he made  
his way through the smoke to the main controls. "Move us Jason!"   
  
"I'm trying!" Snarled his companion, his teeth gritted together as he battled with the  
console in front of him. "These controls were built for someone a little larger than me!"  
Jason tugged at one of the gears with all his might and the ship lifted of it's spiralling  
course.   
  
"Second missile.. missed!" Declared Keyop. "Just!"  
  
Mark switched on the under retros. "We need to get into the atmosphere as fast as  
possible! We need to make a controlled descent!" Without Tiny, G-Force was not going  
to be able to survive a space battle. Getting into the atmosphere may even the odds up.  
Another hit shattered the console next to Princess and sent her flying over onto the floor.  
Mark helped her to her feet as large cracks danced across the ceiling. Jason wrestled once  
more with the controls.   
  
"It's no use! We're going down!"  
  
***  
  
Princess dug her hand deep into the gravel. The closer she could get the better she felt.  
Those few centimetres made all the difference. Safer. The closer she got, the less painful  
it seemed. He hadn't gone away from her. He was still here. Time could be turned back.  
  
Changed.   
  
No, not changed, defeated. As if time never existed. Shouldn't it be that way?   
  
None changing, none altering. Just friendship, and love. No fear what the next day would  
bring. Of what could end.   
  
She knew what the next would bring.  
  
The next day would be empty. A hollow shell of twenty four empty hours. Just like today.  
She began to wonder if time had actually stopped and there was just the same day over  
and over again. The same empty day.   
  
She felt a hand on her shoulder. Her heart jumped.   
  
"Princess..." said the voice. She felt bile lurch into her mouth, a sudden burst of pain and then before blacked out, she heard a distinctly alien whisper in her ear.  
  
"Die," it said.  
  
***  
  
The ship rocked. She was beginning to spin again. The planet loomed up on the screen  
menacingly. She was going to drift into the atmosphere and burn up. At least the fighters  
had broken off their attack. Mark shoved Jason out of the command seat.   
"Princess, Keyop, prepare to launch the Widget, we'll follow you down to the bay."  
  
"The Widget? From space?" She declared.  
  
"It's our only hope!" Jason growled, siding with his Commander. "Now go!"  
  
Mark checked the main instruments while Jason checked the damage reports. Fires began  
to ignite from various control positions. Mark activated the central autopilot. Hopefully it  
could hold her up until they got out.  
  
Jason read out the damage report. "Sensors out. Half thrusters only. Life support is  
finished. Missile hold's been blown open. She's blind and running on empty!"  
  
Mark looked at the console.  
Damn.  
"Guidance systems are gradually failing," Jason continued. "Heatshields are virtually  
gone. Reactor is getting near to critical."   
  
I'm sorry Princess.  
  
"We need to go Commander!"  
  
Mark sat firmly in the control seat. His mind desperately searching for alternatives.  
"Commander!" Jason grabbed Mark's shoulder.  
  
"Finish the damage report." Mark said mutely. Jason complied.  
  
"Under carriage out. Auto pilot..." He stopped and stared at his superior.  
  
"Get out of here Jason!" Mark began running manual checks.  
  
Jason stared "No way Mark! I won't leave you behind!"  
  
"If someone doesn't stay at the controls of the Phoenix she will spin and burn up. Then  
everyone gets left behind! This is the only way. Now go!"  
  
Jason paused. His face set rigid, he began to make his way through the fires towards the  
inner hatch.  
Mark kept his gaze firmly on the screen. The picture was breaking up. Soon there would  
be no visuals to rely on. Just the pull of gravity. Time to prove what a pilot he really was.  
A thought struck him and he smiled wistfully.  
  
"Jason, keep your wrist communicator open!"  
  
Jason paused at the inner hatch, then smiled grimly. "Gotcha. See you on the ground  
Commander."   
  
"Good luck my friend." whispered Mark.  
  
***  
  
President Kane placed the report on the desk. Anderson rubbed his temples.   
"Not now."   
  
"Now."  
  
Anderson looked up. "Jason's missing. Princess is en route to the nearest medical facility  
as we speak and as for Keyop... it's as if he's just..."  
  
"Switched off?"  
  
Anderson eyes filled with anger. "He's a human being he doesn't-" He looked at the file sitting on his desk and pushed it away. and leaned back in his seat.  
"I've been relieved I assume?"  
  
"Temporarily."  
  
"Is that the best solution to our problems?"  
  
"It's either that or I have to watch you have a breakdown." Kane moved closer to  
Anderson. "It's not your fault."   
  
"Isn't it?"  
  
"We've had the conversation before. Centre Neptune's destruction was not your fault.  
Cronus' death was not your fault. This... It's not your fault."  
  
Anderson smiled grimly and stood up. Centre Neptune suddenly seemed so cold. Isolated. What could you expect deep in the ocean? Someone once said that the warmest blood of all came from the sea. An ocean furthest from, maybe.   
  
"This is seen as just another error in my judgement. The third in one year. That's how the  
Council will see it. I know this - so do you."  
  
President Kane gave his old friend a worried look. "It's not how they see it that's  
important."  
  
Anderson looked up. "I'll fight the decision. I am needed here."  
  
The President placed his hand on Anderson's shoulder. So tense, he thought. This man is  
about to snap. "How do you see yourself Anderson? In the end, you're the only one that matters. It's yourself you'll ultimately answer to."  
  
***  
  
The Widget was never made for more than a couple of people. Princess knew this would  
be a cramped trip. Keyop sat adjusting the shield settings silently. Minutes felt like they  
were turning into hours.   
Suddenly Jason slipt into the craft. To her horror, he closed that hatch.  
  
"Where's Mark?" She stammered.  
  
Jason's face was expressionless. Dead. "He's not coming."   
  
Princess thought she was going to be sick. "Not coming?" She lunged to get past Jason.  
"We've got to get him!" Jason grabbed her and held her firmly in his grip. His large eyes  
bore deeply into hers.  
  
"It's his choice Princess," he whispered. "Look." The doors to the bay sealed shut and the  
main tube which connected the nacelle pod to the main hull retracted noisily.  
  
"No!"  
  
"Mark knows what he's doing," Jason replied firmly. "Now release the Widget Keyop."  
Keyop's face blanched. "Mark...." he stammered.  
  
"Open the bay doors!" Jason growled, his facade weakening. "Do it!"  
  
***  
  
Jason sat by Princess' bed. The nurses said she was stable. It must have been a mistake.  
  
He knew she was depressed, but not like this. They said her system was in shock. They  
suspected an overdose. No, not her. Surely not. It must have been something else - but  
what?  
  
He should have been here. Shouldn't have detached himself from the group. Mark, why must you always play the hero? Did you ever see what you did to your friends?   
  
***  
  
The Widget rattled as it powered towards the planet. They sat in silence. Finally Jason  
spoke up. "We're slowing down. Powered descent Keyop."  
  
"But.. can't leave Mark!" Whimpered Keyop.  
  
"We don't want to take a casual drive through the atmosphere, the shields won't hold."  
Jason explained. He took a deep breath. "We need distance from the Phoenix."  
  
Princess' eyes flared with anger. "How can you.." She stopped when she saw the pain in  
her comrade's eyes. She lowered her gaze submissively. "I'm sorry Jason."  
  
Jason's mouth twitched slightly but kept his attention on the readouts. "Princess target  
the Mechanical Wasp. Plot a direct course - and get ready we will need to bail fast."  
  
"A collision between the Widget won't even dent it!" Proclaimed his female companion.  
  
"Maybe not." He turned and gave her sad smile. "Just trust me on this one."  
  
***  
  
"As you can see Anderson, soon my Wasp will have broken into the temple's energy supply, powering my magnificent mechanical creatures with the power of a thousand suns!" Zoltar twirled his hand theatrically. "Victory to Spectra, I think."  
  
"G-Force will stop you!" Spat Anderson. "As always."  
  
With a whisk of his cloak, Zoltar revealed a portable monitor. On the screen, it replayed  
the attack and final dive of the Phoenix into the atmosphere.   
  
"I think not Security Chief Anderson. I believe you children have met an unfortunate  
death at the hands of my ships!"   
  
Anderson snapped and lurched forward with all his might. His protest was met by the  
butt of a rifle. He fell to the floor, his lip bleeding. "Damn you Zoltar!" He muttered.   
Tiny leant next to him, his guards monitoring him closely.   
  
"I can take 'em Chief," he whispered. "Just say the word."  
  
"We wait." Replied the Chief. "We wait our moment."   
  
***  
  
Jason watched the cracks split across the ships interior. His skin felt it was on fire. They  
were through the upper atmosphere, but would she hold together?  
  
"This ship wasn't made for spacetravel Princess. It certainly wasn't designed for  
dive-bombing the atmosphere of a strange planet. Have you fixed the course?   
  
"Dead ahead" Princess' replied flatly.  
  
Jason touched her arm. She flinched involuntarily. "When we bail, I'm going to need  
your help."  
  
She turned and faced him. A look of confusion spread across her face. "Help? Jason,  
what are you hiding from me?"  
  
***  
  
"Sir we have spotted a small craft heading this way."   
  
Zoltar waved absently at the guard to leave. "Ah, some of G-Force must have escaped  
their destruction. A mere delay." He twisted and pulled out a communicator. "Target that  
incoming ship!"  
  
Anderson, Tiny and the rest of the achelogical captives watched in horror as the  
mechanical Wasp turned it's antenna like turrets towards a small speck in the sky.  
  
"Sir," one of the guards raised his communicator to his leader. "There is something else  
you may need to know."  
  
Zoltar, however, was preoccupied. "What is that whining?"  
  
***  
  
"What are you hiding Jason?" Princess glared at the blue clad warrior.   
Keyop tugged her arm. "Need to bail!" He said.   
  
Princess studied Jason. She stopped at his arm and with horror looked at him directly.  
"Where's you bracelet?" Jason remained silent. her eyes darted across the cabin.  
  
The console.  
  
It sat in a small alcove set into the relay circuits. It was flashing.  
  
"He's using his bracelet to follow mine." Jason fixed a gaze firmly on his friend. "He's  
trying to turn this to our advantage." He looked out of the Widget's cracked window.  
  
"You could say we're playing the guide dog."  
  
She followed his gaze.  
"Oh my.."  
  
***  
  
"What do you mean?" Growled Zoltar. The whining was getting louder.  
  
"There!" cried one of the prisoners. Zoltar's jaw dropped. Looming from a slight  
distance was a large shadow against the purple clouds. The immediate clouds began to  
glow a thick orange.  
  
Anderson's fists clenched, his brow knoted. This could be it. "Please, come back to me  
safely team."  
  
"No!" Screamed Zoltar. The Widget fired past at incredible speed.  
  
Behind it the purple, misty clouds tore open and a flaming mass bore out, blind and   
screaming. The blue hue of the Phoenix was torn away. The back section was a mass of  
flames and blackened hull. The left nacelle had been torn open and the nose had burst as  
if it was a balloon. The retro rockets were firing constantly trying to slow it's speed. To  
keep it in control. If Mark was alive in there it would only be thanks to the extreme  
shielding within the cabin compartment.  
  
The speed meant that all this could only be registered in a second, but it was image which  
would last Tiny Harper a lifetime.  
  
***  
  
"Now!" Screamed Jason over the noise. Princess was transfixed on the mutated mass of  
metal that was following them. The skill required to guide the ship blind on a homing  
beam was incalculable. It was super human.   
  
It was G-Force.   
  
It meant Mark was still alive.  
  
Jason grabbed and pulled her from the window and out the hatch.  
  
"No!" Princess screamed.  
  
***  
  
"NO!" Pleaded Zoltar as the Widget exploded into the Wasp.   
  
"Now Tiny!" Yelled Anderson who immediately disabled one of the guards, grabbed the  
weapon and through it to Harper.  
  
***  
  
"Jason!" Yelled Keyop as the continued free falling to the planet. Princess was awoken  
from her trance as the second in command glowed and transmuted back to civilian in  
mid-air. With his bracelet destroyed in the Widget, he was powerless and falling fast. She  
lunged forward and began to pick up speed. She wasn't going to risk anyone else. With  
Keyop along side, the two remaining birdstyle members dived down and picked up Jason.  
  
"Thanks for the help." Jason grimaced.   
  
They touched ground as the shockwave hit them.  
  
***  
  
The blast knocked everyone to the ground. The Phoenix smashed into the Wasp's legs  
and the exploded, the main body of the craft continued onwards and crashed into the  
weakened temple.   
  
The heavens screamed. What was left of the great craft and the Wasp were then engulfed  
in an almighty explosion from the temple knocking both the Phoenix and the Wasp  
through the air.  
  
The remainder of the Phoenix, mainly the midsection, was thrown over the clearing and  
it's occupants and crashed into the trees beyond with a hollow, empty metallic thud.  
  
There was silence.  
  
Any Spectran resistance in the clearing was dealt by Princess and Keyop in a spectacular  
fight. With Tiny and Jason in civillians backing them the fight was other in minutes.  
Anderson and the scientists then help round up the captures Spectrans.   
With the four team members reunited, they faced a tired and angry Chief Anderson.  
  
"Where's Zoltar?" he declared. Looking around the clearing. "Where's Zoltar?"  
  
***  
  
  
Princess watches. Time and time before she has seen Mark do this. Everytime pushing  
the envelope, floating to the ground from nowhere after successfully destroying the  
enemy. Surviving when all others should have died. Teasing them, stretching his  
crewmates to the limit until at the last minute appearing, a white dove of peace, the  
hunter coming back from his expedition.   
  
Always, he comes back.  
  
So she waits.  
  
And waits.   
  
She sees Jason. He won't look at her. If she can make him look at her, it won't be true.   
  
"Princess... we've found the body."  
  
***  
  
Jason watched helplessly as they wheeled Princess away for more tests. Damn you Mark.  
You say we should work as a team and yet you had to play the hero. You blame me for  
being the loner when it was you all along. We could have beaten this another way! I  
know we could have! 


	2. Jason Makes A Discovery

The Phoenix powered down towards its target. Like a bird of prey, it came down low and then, at the last minute, reared up before the vessel.   
Missiles screamed from its belly annihilating the craft, scattering its remains across the sea like ashes at a funeral.  
  
Three more similar shaped crafts swooped down from the clouds, heading towards the mighty spaceship. The Phoenix rolled with the attack and slid under the waves only to burst from the sea seconds later with it's weapons dancing across its hull. Two of the crafts were disorientated by the attack and were winged in the rain of gunfire. The third wasn't as easily caught of guard and manoeuvred away from the firing arc. Its guns laced the sea, catching the oceans newborn vessel. The brilliant blue wing of the Phoenix was splattered with a luminous liquid.  
  
The retro thrusters on the Phoenix's underbelly angled then ignited into a brilliant white and the ship arced into the sky. The enemy vessel watched as the ship flew into line with the morning sun. In the radiance of the solar glare, the Phoenix disappeared momentarily. Before the enemy craft could ascertain it's location, the Phoenix flew straight the craft and then suddenly banked away allowing a smaller fighter following it to hit the surprised fighter full on. The vessel ignited into a ball of flame.  
  
The small white fighter swung round and returned to its bay in the back of the Phoenix. The ship shifted to hover mode and Anderson's tiny observation vessel pulled up along side it. Docked, Anderson entered G-Force's brand new craft. The simulated battle had not brought the results he wanted.  
  
***  
  
He entered the G-1 fighter bay. Princess was waiting for him, still seated in the white fighter's cockpit. "That was unnecessary." He breathed. Princess dropped to the deck gently and straightened with a shrug. She brushed passed him.   
  
"Was it?" She said defiantly. "Trying to prove a point Princess?" Anderson asked, his knuckles white.   
  
This insubordination had to stop before he return them to active duty. "I can't return you all to roster if you intend on pulling stunts like that." He paused before adding the final blow. "Mark wouldn't approve."   
  
If he wanted a reaction, Anderson certainly wasn't disappointed. Before he could finish his breath he found himself forced against the bay wall. His brain barely had time to register a change in location. Just a flash of white and he was suddenly pressed hard against the bulkhead.   
"Trying to prove a point?" Princess countered. "What do you expect from us?"   
  
"I expect you to your duty. To this planet. To this galaxy. Spectra could attack at anytime and at this given moment we are defenceless." She let go and backed away. "You blame me for Mark's death." Anderson said flatly. It wasn't a question.   
  
"You are hiding something from me." Princess replied. "I know it. I'm tired of people not telling me what I need to know. You know what I saw at Mark's grave and you know what's going on, yet you pretend it doesn't make a difference."   
  
"It doesn't." Anderson rubbed his temples. "Believe me Princess. If there were a way to bring Mark back I would tell you. There isn't. I only wish there was."  
  
***  
  
There was a knock on her door. Princess didn't lock it anymore. The door to her Centre Neptune quarters opened and Jason stepped in, clapping. "Well, you certainly put the Chief in a good mood. He's assigned double training shifts for the next week!"   
  
Princess smiled weakly. "Jason, I need to tell you something. The Chief ordered me not to mention it, but I can't just sit here." She sat on her bed staring at the floor. "What's worse is that I don't think it's because he doesn't believe me. I think he does. That's the problem."   
  
Jason sat on the bed beside her. "You're not making sense. What is this about Princess? If it's about the team, I need to know. I can't command if we are keeping secrets from one another."   
  
"I've seen Mark."  
  
***  
  
Anderson switched off the monitor on his desk and the image of Princess and Jason faded from his screen.   
  
"That's all we need." Kane said from the other side of Anderson's desk. "The team is too close to the issue, you have to keep them clear. They will only get in the way of Cronus' investigation!"   
"It's not that easy." Anderson replied stiffly. "If I come down on them anymore, I risk alienating them. This is a delicate time, we can't afford the risk of fracturing the team."   
  
"Have you looked into finding a replacement as I asked?"   
  
Anderson got up and looked out of at the ocean, the tranquillity of the sea calmed his nerves. "We have no one left in the pool who is ready for the role. G-Force are the prototypes. It's not just a matter of skill - it's experience and trust. They are like siblings."   
  
"And are they like lovers as well?" President Kane added sharply. Anderson ignored him - as he had constantly ignored Princess and Mark's closeness. "They need time to grieve. To adapt. They have had neither, I believe adding a new member may jeopardise their efficiency further."   
  
"If Spectra attack, we may have no choice. Anderson, I know they are like your own children, but we are at crisis here. I need to know I can depend on you and your team." Kane drove home his point. "You should've let me assign someone else to this Anderson. I don't believe you are capable of handling your team on this. You pushed to stay on duty, now prove to me you can do it!"   
  
Anderson didn't answer.  
  
***  
  
Princess sped to her home on land with Keyop sitting behind her. Her motorcycle was powerful -even in its civilian disguise. She dodged the traffic with what could be described as superhuman skill. She halted at the lights and Keyop jumped off the bike. He was slowly returning to his normal self. "Don't be late - I'm cooking your favourite tonight!" she warned. He grinned a wickedly in return and ran across the road towards the zoo.  
  
Princess smiled. It was good to see the Keyop she remembered. Perhaps she could then forget the hollow shell she had experienced over the last past weeks. Her grin faded when she saw that familiar shape across from the lights.   
Too far to make out for definite, but she was pretty sure she knew who it was. She slammed of the breaks and swerved around the car in front. Within that one second she had taken to pass the vehicle, the figure was gone. She knew from past experience that following the trail was impossible.   
  
That was another reason why she knew it must be Mark.  
  
***  
  
Tiny dug deep with his shovel. Heaping it with his frustration as well as the dirt, he unleashed over his shoulder. "This is wrong Jason. Whatever we find, I don't want to see it."   
  
Jason continued to unearth the grave with his own shovel. He ignored Tiny's gaze.   
  
"I mean, no offence to Princess, but all we are going to find is a body."   
  
Jason looked up and scowled. He didn't stop digging. "She's G-Force Tiny. We stick together."   
  
"Yeah, but we now how Mark's death affected her and all that," Tiny rubbed his neck, he looked distinctly uncomfortable with what he was saying. "She could be hallucinating and all we're gonna find is a body. We're also disobeying orders."  
  
Jason grinned. "So what's the Chief going to do? Spank us?"   
  
Tiny shook his head. "We're breaking orders, we're digging up a grave and," he looked at the people beginning to gather. "We're doing it in the middle of the day!"   
  
"I'm the Commander. You'll do as your ordered Tiny." Jason said flashing another wicked grin. It was the first time Tiny had seen Jason pull a suggestion of rank since being promoted. He knew he didn't want the promotion. He and the rest of the team had refused to change numbers. Tiny recalled Anderson's fury at the insubordination then and dreaded to think how he would be when he found out they had dug up Mark's grave in broad daylight.   
  
"Besides," Jason continued, his shovel firmly in the implanted in the ground. "As they say, pay dirt."  
  
***  
  
"What do you want?" Anderson didn't look up from his work. His office was dimly lit. The illumination from the searchlights of the underwater maintenance vehicles cast unwanted shadows across his deep-sea office. Centre Neptune never seemed so sinister.   
  
"You knew Mark's body was missing. You knew that Princess had spotted him. You won't tell us anything!" Jason's fisted slammed against Anderson's desk. "I thought we were family!" The words sliced through Anderson like a knife through butter. They were like family. No, they were family. Was this his entire fault? How do you protect those who don't wish to be protected?   
  
"It's not Mark." He looked up Jason, his tired eyes pleading him to ask no more. "Don't let your team get involved. It's being dealt with."   
  
"It's too late. We are involved. Chief," he leant forward, now it was his time to plead. "Give us launch clearance. What ever this is, it should be up to us to stop it - not Cronus." Anderson flinched. "This is our team mate. This is our family. Our blood. We stick together. Acting as one."   
  
"He's dead.." Anderson muttered. He took off his glasses and rubbed his chin. "You are all too close to be objective." He looked up at Jason. "I don't want to lose another of you."   
  
Jason stood firm, towering over Anderson. "I'm sorry you feel that way Chief."   
  
Anderson replaced his glasses and stood to meet Jason's aggression. He was now resolute in his decision. "Cronus can handle it. Don't make me confine you all to base."   
  
Jason's eyes burned with anger. "We don't need the Phoenix to finish this. - or these." He threw his communicator bracelet onto Anderson's desk.   
  
With that, he left the office. Anderson sat back down, never before had he felt so powerless to stop a chain of events unfolding. He activated the intercom. He knew Princess and Keyop were still on land, but Tiny and Jason.   
  
"Zark, I need you to shut down complex. Jason and Tiny are not to leave." He rubbed his temples for the umpteenth time that day. "I want them confined. By security if need be." With that, he slumped back into his chair, swallowed up by the dark shadows that haunted his office. 


	3. Princess Runs Into Trouble

The flames caressed the bulkheads and the heat burned through his costume. His gloved hand, pressed hard on the red-hot metallic lever, seemed to have given up relaying pain messages to his brain. The vessel vibrated constantly, getting more violent by the second. His bones felt as if they were ready to be shaken free of his body.   
  
Focus.   
  
There was no screen left. No visual way of discerning his location aside from the beeping of his wrist bracelet. The signal tied himself in with his partner. It was an almost instinctive skill, partially his own, partially the unknown powers of the cerebonic implant - it's abilities sometimes even he couldn't comprehend.   
  
It was like a bat using sonar, however he was doing it, he was doing it. He knew that his team were just ahead of him still, keeping a firm distance. Then the blip disappeared. The craft from which it had come from had been destroyed. It had located and found his target. He powered the thrusters of the dying craft to maximum. They would only last seconds, but seconds was all he had before impact. He looked up at the upper airlock. It was a mass of flames and debris, however it was a viable escape route. There was a chance to survive. Impact any second.   
  
He leapt and somersaulted backwards out of the chair and up towards the hatch. Impact. Energy danced. For a moment, Mark found himself trapped in time. Between the chair and the hatch. Unmoving. Paralysed.  
  
Energy caressed him. He could feel it crawling across his skin, entering through his pores. It felt alive. He felt fear. It floated before him. Purple. The control exploded into flames...   
  
The alien woke up in a cold sweat. His breath irregular and heavy. It smiled. It was a small price to pay for even partial freedom.  
  
***  
  
"I cannot get into contact with either Keyop or Princess!" Zark's voice crackled over Anderson's intercom. "Oh dear me. I suppose my Fossdec Amplifer must be malfunctioning!"   
  
"No," Anderson paused. The concern on his face shrouded by shadows. Was it worth explaining to Zark? It would only get him nervous. "The problem is external. Just keep Jason and Tiny in isolation. I'll deal with Princess and Keyop."  
  
***  
  
"How long do you think the Chief will keep us locked up here?" Tiny surveyed the sealed room. It was comfortable, but lacking essential escape equipment. Anderson knew his team well.   
  
"As long as it takes." Jason replied lying on the sofa. He was watching the fishes swim past the window. "It's up to Princess and Keyop now."   
  
"Don't you have a plan Jason?" Tiny was slowly beginning to feel that Princess was right. Something was up. Anderson wouldn't lock them here if there wasn't a reason? "We may need a plan."   
  
Jason turned and stared at the corner of the room and then back to Tiny. Surveillance. "Ah," Tiny muttered, sticking his hands in his pockets. "We wait."  
  
***  
  
"In here!" Princess slipped in through the window and into the bedroom. It was a basement apartment.   
  
Keyop fell through the tiny open window after her. "Why here?" He asked.   
  
Princess went over to the bed and pulled out a box from underneath it. Inside was a host of computer equipment. She began to set it up carefully.   
  
Keyop surveyed the room. TV. Wardrobe. Bed. That was pretty much it. He wandered over to the bedside table. There was a framed picture resting on it. The photo inside was of the G-Force team sitting on a bench with Anderson hovering over them. Mark had his arm around Princess.   
  
"Mark." Keyop whispered.   
  
Princess looked up and then sharply looked away. "We used to come here when we wanted some privacy. Somewhere the Chief didn't know about. We used to talk a lot. Mark sometimes needed to talk." She paused. "Used to."   
  
She went silent, hanging her head, her green locks covering her face. She looks so tired, thought Keyop. He rested a tiny hand on her shoulder. He knelt down and placed something gently in her hand. She looked down in surprise. It was a bracelet.   
  
"Mark's," Bleeped Keyop. "On dresser."   
  
She felt her eyes well up, and then she giggled. He she recalled how often he'd chastise Tiny for not wearing his bracelet only to leave his sitting by a bed in a rarely used apartment. Even Commanders have their off days, she reflected.   
  
"Must be his spare." She guessed. "Dangerous thing to leave lying around." She tied it to her belt. A memento. She had so little that could be described as that. Composing herself - brushing her hair back, and wiping her eyes - she got back to work.   
  
"I need your help breaking into Centre Neptune's computers." Keyop literally jumped in shock.   
"Why?" He Bleeped. Princess had told him nothing. She's simply grabbed him straight from his bed (by the ear) and pulled him into his buggy. Unsurprisingly, he was feeling a little uncomfortable as to what was actually going on.   
  
"I'll tell you why once we find it nosey! We need to find it fast too. The Chief is bound to be looking for us."   
  
"What are we looking for?" the smallest member of G-Force asked suspiciously.   
  
"The truth about what was going on at Orion Major! Something happened there which the Chief isn't telling us about!"  
  
***  
  
It was surprising how easy it was.   
  
Despite his poor mobility, he had tailed them with out being seen. What was it he felt? Disappointment? He thought he had trained them better.   
  
Drifting..   
  
The Alien was resting, this gave him limited time before it found him. Then there would be punishment. It wouldn't stop him though - he would continue to fight. He knew the Alien was growing more powerful by the day.   
  
He needed to warn them, but he knew it would find him as soon as he did - then it would kill them. He couldn't have that. He'd watch. Observe. The key to victory is to know not only the moves of your enemy, but your enemy's enemy.   
  
Dare he move closer?  
  
***  
  
"Where's Jason?" Keyop asked. He stopped tapping at the mobile computer terminal Princess had set up and absently looking at his wrist. Much to his irritation, Princess had confiscated his bracelet - she hadn't explained why.   
  
"Jason and Tiny will still be on Centre Neptune." Both she and Jason knew that confronting Anderson might result in the Chief confining them to the deep-sea base. It was a risk, and it seemed likely that the Chief had done exactly that. This meant it was up to her and Keyop.   
  
"Broken into files." Keyop exclaimed.   
  
"That was quick!" She said saving all the data that was coming onto the screen to disk.   
  
"Been faster if I knew what was going on." Sniffed Keyop.   
  
A few sentences caught her attention as she began the transfer. All the scientists from the expedition had since been murdered. By whom? She couldn't wait around to read the rest. It wouldn't take long to trace them. She placed the disk in her pocket.   
  
"We have to move Keyop, they'll find us if we stay."   
  
"Don't want to be in trouble." Sighed Keyop resting his head on his hands.   
  
She nodded and sat down on the bed next to him. Princess had decided not to tell Keyop about Mark's body being missing. After the shock he went through just a few weeks back, it seemed a good idea to limit information from him. However she wasn't sure how long she could keep him in the dark. Princess turned to Keyop, folding her laptop up. She took a deep breath.   
  
"I need to tell you something."  
  
***  
  
He listened from the small window on the sidewalk.   
  
This was as close as he had ever allowed himself to get since that time at the grave - and the Alien had almost killed Princess for that.   
  
He had to make himself plead with the Alien. Beg and swear he'd never do anything as stupid as that again.   
  
It let her live.   
  
The sacrifice of his dignity was a small price and he swore he would keep on fighting. Now time was running out, once again, risks had to be taken.   
  
He listened to Princess telling Keyop her story. She remembered little about the encounter at the grave except his voice. She told him how she had spotted someone who looked like him in the passing weeks. About Jason and how they dug up the grave. They checked the grave?   
For the first time in what seemed like eternity, he felt hope swell up from inside. He shuddered; he remembered clawing his way out of the coffin, out of control. He began to back away. Such feelings would awaken the Alien's senses.   
  
He started to retreat, breaking into a run, only to trip. He cascaded across the road, rolling onto the pavement. He looked up to see a group of red clad figures walking towards him. Riga's top men, Anderson's backup team and the group that Mark's father used to command. The pilots of Riga. They were approaching with their weapons drawn.   
  
"No." He muttered. It knew. It was coming. It will kill you all, he cried inside his head. "Kill you!"  
  
***  
  
"Should have told me!" Keyop blurted, tears rolling down his face.   
  
"I didn't want you to get upset. I didn't want to see you.." Princess stopped mid sentence, her ears peeked with interest. She recognized that voice!   
  
She leapt to the window. Her face lit up. That man! The clothes were unfamiliar and worse for wear, as was his general appearance, but that was-   
  
"Mark!" She cried, tears rolling down her face. The she assessed the situation. Cronus' men from planet Riga. They were advancing on him weapons drawn.   
  
"No!" She looked across at Mark, he turned and caught her eye. He mouthed something at her. Run. Should she? He needed her help - but why would he ask her to run? Then his face changed.   
  
Contorted.   
  
Not into something else, but as if it was a mask worn by someone entirely different. Someone evil. The eyes twisted towards the attacking men. Princess couldn't breathe. Something dreadful was falling into place in her mind.   
  
"Oh no!" she exclaimed. "Don't tell me Mark killed those scientists!" With one motion Mark - or whatever it was - swung round in a flying arc and killed five of the Rigan men with one kick. Five highly trained soldiers.   
  
His speed was terrifying - even to Princess. She backed towards the door, her face pale and clammy. "Let's go."   
  
"Where?" Keyop was still hovering near the window not sure what to make of the scene outside.   
"Somewhere safer."  
  
***  
  
"It was a bloodbath!" growled Kane. "Fifteen men! Rigan authorities are furious. Cronus is dealing with them now.   
  
"They shouldn't have engaged the target!" Anderson retorted. "Cronus thought they could handle it - so did you, if I recall."   
  
Anderson never felt comfortable referring to this Rigan leader as Cronus. This wasn't the real Cronus. The name was a title offered the best Rigan pilot to uphold the legend of the original. The first Cronus was Mark's father, whom Anderson had worked with for many years. Cronus' Rigan team maintained the same respect for Anderson as had his old friend. The new Cronus had sworn that it wasn't just the name of Cronus he wished to uphold, but the strength of character the original was so greatly admired for.   
  
Fifteen good men had been openly slaughtered in front of eight witnesses.   
  
"We have another problem." Anderson commented. "7-Zark-7 informs me that my personal files were infiltrated earlier today - around the same time as the attack. "I think Princess knows about Orion Major."   
  
"You trained them too well Anderson." Kane's remark held a mix of frustration and admiration.   
  
"I know." Anderson replied. He should have prepared for this, but the strain of the last few weeks had clearly affected his judgement. He was getting sloppy.   
  
"This creature has to be stopped." Kane looked into the weary eyes of the Security Chief. "You know who it will be after next." Anderson nodded. "I'm the only one left."   
  
Kane shook his head. "You're not thinking straight, Anderson. You shouldn't have fought me relieving you. You're making errors. I can see that, even if the council can't. No, Anderson, you are not the last.   
  
Anderson's eyes widened. "But he was not part of the survey team!"   
  
"I don't think it's showing any particular interest in specifics."   
  
A light flashed on his desk. "Anderson." He said curtly.   
  
"We need to talk Chief." Princess' voice was icy. She knew.   
  
He paused. He had to make a decision. A risk. He glanced over at Kane. Could he send his children to kill one of their own? Even for Galactic security? Did he have a choice? How many more will have to die for his mistakes? There was no easy way out of this one. All roads led to one action. He released the intercom. Kane grabbed his hand as he did so.   
  
"Put G-Force on this mission and it could be disastrous for the Federation - who knows, they may even side with the creature!" Anderson pulled his hand away from Kane's grip.   
  
"I know what you are thinking, Anderson, but you can't send them. You can't send them to kill one of their own!"   
  
"I had no intention of sending them," Anderson stood up stiffly. "I'm going with them." He activated the intercom once more. "Jason, prepare to assemble your crew and launch the Phoenix!" He brushed past the President and stopped at the office door, paused then turned to face his guest. Through his frustration, Kane felt a pang of sympathy for his friend.   
  
These were his adopted children. They were also his soldiers whom he had to send out to fight - and possibly die. Not for himself, but for the whole galaxy. How do you bear that burden?   
  
"You're right. I could not ask my team to kill their brother." Anderson pocketed his glasses, his eyes gazing into something beyond nothingness. He turned and stormed out of the office. "But it's up to me to kill my son." 


	4. Anderson Explains Everything

All assembled on board the mighty Phoenix, Anderson explained to the team what they were facing. His audience was a tense and vaguely antagonistic one. He decided to play this very carefully.   
  
"The archaeological dig on Orion major was a major scientific discovery. We know now that it is also potentially a threat as big as Spectra."   
  
"How so Chief?" Jason asked, listening intently. "And what does this have to do with Mark?"   
"Something from that temple is killing of the science team?" Princess hypothesised. "Something using Mark as a host."   
  
Anderson nodded. "The temple was surrounded by a powerful shield. Power of that kind can hold the likes of Spectra out, but more importantly, it can hold what it imprisons in."   
  
"You knew this at the time?" Jason felt anxious. He feared what he may learn from the Chief and how that may affect his opinion of the man. After all, how much did the Chief keep from them?   
  
"No, not at the time. The team hadn't finished the translation. All we knew was that the temple inscriptions were a warning of some kind. That's why I went there. To access the temple's threat level."   
  
Jason shifted uncomfortably. "So how did it get Mark?"   
  
"Zoltar's mechanical Wasp was extremely powerful. It had weakened the temple's shields enough to make a breach. Mark's collision in the Phoenix took out the Wasp and sliced through the hole in the field."   
  
"So much for the temple with the power of a thousand suns." Jason smirked.  
  
"Yes, well that was a mistranslation on the science teams part that somehow got back to Zoltar."   
  
Jason smiled, Anderson didn't like mistakes and he looks distinctly uncomfortable with that one.   
  
"What did it say?" Keyop asked.   
  
"It was a contextual mistake. The science team later decided it was a reference to a solar calendar It would remain powered for over a thousand solar years."   
  
"It was a Typo?" Jason remarked with surprise. "All this has come about because of a tiny clerical mistake?"   
  
Anderson shrugged. "This is the hand we've been dealt, now let's deal with the consequences."   
  
"Okay, so Mark's processed by this creature?" Tiny asked as he was piloting the craft. "How do we get him back?"   
  
Anderson took a deep breath and rubbed his temples. It was becoming a regular mannerism. "It doesn't work like that. The inscriptions tell of a race that is pure evil from outer space. It's malicious - with no morals at all. It can jump bodies making it very hard to locate. As soon as it takes a body - it consumes the soul."   
  
"So what you're saying is that Mark's gone." Whispered Princess.   
  
"That's why I kept this from you." Anderson could feel the tension rising in the control room. "It was for your own good. Grieving is a natural process, I could only see this hindering any recovery you made from this tragedy."   
  
"So why is it killing the science team? And why is it keeping Mark's body?" Jason didn't like the direction of this conversation.   
  
"I don't know why it's attacking these men. I don't believe it needs a reason. However, it's very resourceful. It can remain hidden for long periods of time. It kept Mark's body alive until it could get to Earth. I believe it knows that Mark processes super human powers."   
  
"But he has no bracelet to tap into them!" Princess remarked.   
  
"That's true," Anderson agreed. "I believe the alien taps into his cerebonic implant much like his bracelet does. It's using his skills and powers on top of it's own. Its appearances are getting more frequent - and more deadly. It must be stopped. Now."   
  
Jason felt that sinking feeling. "Chief you remember when we lost Princess? You asked us to bomb those monster flowers she was captured in, knowing she was there! It only made matters worse! The problem escalated and innocent people died. I should have refused to carry out your order then, and I certainly am now! No go Chief. I won't kill Mark!"   
  
"I'm not asking you to." Anderson lowered his head, this schism between he and his team eating away at his conscience.   
  
"You won't kill him. I will." He looked up and caught Jason's angry gaze and matched it. "Remember, this isn't Mark. This is Mark's body. Mark died when the creature took him."   
  
"No it didn't." Princess whispered meekly, as if trying to convince herself. She got up. Firm and focused. "He's alive in that. thing. I saw him. It was Mark, but just for a second. He warned me."   
  
"Princess.." Anderson interjected but was cut off.   
  
"That's why it follows me. It's him, not the creature. I think he still has some control left! I'm sure of it!"   
  
"This creature kills its hosts! It's hunted and murdered all the scientists on the expedition. That is not the actions that Mark would submit to. If it follows its pattern it will be after Tiny and myself next - then it will continue. It won't stop. The race that imprisoned it couldn't kill it. It was against their code of life, but we must. It must be stopped!" He stepped closer to Princess but she backed away. "Its power is still growing. It is an invisible killer. We have to destroy it."   
  
"Destroy it?" Jason asked. "How?"   
  
Anderson pulled the metal device out from his coat. "The translations say the creature's physical body is weak to the cold. We'll use the Frigid Midget - the ice bomb that Zark invented for your battle against the Sea Dragon. It's been customised to confine the spread of its affect. This device will stop it transferring to another body. It will die within the frozen host."   
  
"No way!" Exclaimed Princess. "Mark is in there."  
  
"Impossible." Growled Anderson.  
  
"What if, somehow, the cerebonic implant is protecting Mark? It could also explain why the creature has not jumped. Perhaps it can't! Perhaps they are both trapped." Her mind was racing. How could it be stopped?   
  
"You can't know that. It's likely it hasn't jumped host simply because it doesn't need to. Mark is an excellent source of power - thanks to the cerebonic implant."   
Anderson handed the bomb to Keyop. "Keyop, go and load this into the launcher. Once we locate the Alien we'll destroy it with this."   
  
Princess remained silent. She pulled out the bracelet that Keyop had found. She knew Mark wouldn't want her to try and save him. He was very much like Anderson in that way. The galaxy comes first.   
  
She was not Mark, and she would readily sacrifice herself to bring him back.   
  
"Chief, let me try and stop it first. I think I might be able to get Mark back."   
  
"No Princess. That's an order." Anderson gripped her shoulder. "This has all gone on far enough. We can't get sentimental. Mark's gone!"  
  
She pulled herself from his grip. "Mark's in there! I believe I can get him out! We owe him that! This is not girlish sentiment! I won't let this go!" Anderson stepped back. Princess continued. "If Mark was dead, I would readily kill this creature. I would do it with my bare hands - but I know Mark's in there. You have to trust me!" She paused before continuing. "If I fail, you can do what has to be done."  
  
Anderson stood mutely. Unsure how to proceed. The group hung heavy in the tense atmosphere. Prince took a deep breath and continued her plight.  
  
"Chief, I won't disobey you. If you order me not to, I will follow your orders. We're G-Force. We are a team, but please let me do this. I know I'm right!"   
  
Anderson slumped into the nearby chair. Could he send another to their death? Could he be sure Princess wasn't right? How ready was he to kill this thing if Mark was in there? Jason was right, he'd made these choices before, but that didn't make this one any easier. He'd almost killed Princess then. Ordered the team to destroy the follows that held her. The plan had failed. The Flowers multiplied as a result, and Princess could have been killed by his order. Did he want to make the same mistake?   
  
He felt Jason place a gloved hand on his shoulder. "Chief. We're not kids. I believe in Princess. She knows her duty. If she believes there is a chance, I will back her all the way."   
  
"Sharp mind!" Keyop bleeped and tapped his helmet. "Devious."   
  
Anderson sat and stared into the distance. They know their duty. What right had he to expect them to fight and die for the Galaxy if could not show trust in them? Faith.   
He slowly glanced at the remaining three. They stood, still waiting for his orders, regardless of the situation. They may argue with his orders occasionally, but when it came to it, they were G-Force. Like Mark, unswervingly dedicated to the future of the Galaxy. He was so proud - of them all.  
  
***  
  
It hated him.   
  
The fact that the soul was still there had at first shocked the Alien. That it too, was trapped within this body as prisoner with its original host, increased it's loathing for it's companion.  
  
He felt its hate.   
  
It would hurt him.   
  
Torture him.   
  
It took pleasure in all these things. It spent the time systematically killing simply to hurt Mark.   
  
It told him it would kill all the people who were there at its prison. It had made him watch as it slowly killed off the scientists - using his body and then gloating on his agony.   
He could feel its power.   
  
It was growing. Soon there would be little left of him - but there would always be just enough to make it's life miserable, to slowly drive it crazy. It may have a strong and powerful body at its disposal, but it was trapped. Even if he failed to escape its control, Mark knew he would have the last laugh. He could feel it's physical presence deep within his stomach. He recalled the pain - and fear - when it had entered him. Trapped in the energy field, it's purple cactus like body surfing the streams of energy, dancing before him. Caressing his face, before slowly forcing itself down his throat. There it hid. Undetected. Its power was incredible. It could heal his body as if by magic. It could remain hidden from detection. It escaped the notice of the medics - but he could always feel it. It's distended weight gorging on his fluids. Like a spider in it's web. It spent much of the time asleep; it's only escape from the small confines of his body. That gave him his time in control of his body. Not much, but just enough to move around. He had to be delicate - as it slept lightly, listening for any disobedience.   
  
It mocked him for these pathetic attempts to regain command of his physical body. If Mark could, he'd have ripped open his own belly and throttled the creature with his own hands. It had too much power over his motor functions to let him do that. He could walk, and occasionally muster the ability to say simple sentences, but essentially he was a puppet on a string. It was the master and next it intended to kill his friends.   
  
Mark sat a distance from Princess' home base on a nearby rooftop. She owned rooms in a small wooden building within the city. He was looking down on the building from five stories up. Rain spluttered down on the long coat that shrouded his body. It suited his mood.   
  
He studied the building. No lights were on. She wasn't there. He watched as he did most nights, hoping that creating a slight pattern, a definable trail - may make him easy to locate. He masked this thought from the creature with all the willpower he could muster. Clouding his true intentions with feelings of blind hope and feeble need. It genuinely believed that his attention to Princess was some longing for love, for contact. Stupid human desire. There was some truth to that - Mark knew that.   
  
In the end though, he hoped that his movements would give his friends the opportunity to stop the beast. In a silly way, he hoped that if he were to be killed - to stop this evil creature, it would be Princess who delivered the final blow. Ending his misery, she would be the last sight he would see, and he couldn't think of a better one.  
  
But it was powerful. It was far more powerful than G-Force probably realised. He couldn't warn Princessr, he couldn't help her. It knew that he had told her to flee when it killed Cronus' men. It didn't care. It had made a good job killing those people - it was satisfied. Besides, it wanted to prolong Mark's agony.   
  
Her day will come, it told him. Nevertheless, it tortured him for his actions.  
  
He felt something touch his back. It felt so alien to be touched. His senses went into overdrive, exploding with recognition. That perfume. The stroke of the hand. He didn't want to look, indulge in her beauty. He wanted to cry but he was too impotent for such actions.   
  
"Ru-n" He stammered.   
  
"No," came the firm voice. "It ends here."   
  
Mark's face suddenly grinned, and with a faint hiss began to giggle. The alien reawakened, gleefully aware of the implications of this encounter, tensed its muscles. It wanted to play with this one. It knew how much pain that this would cause the host.   
  
"Mark. I lo-" It swung round and caught her chin; she somersaulted and landed on her back, hard against the gravel-covered roof. She screamed in pain. Her arm was painfully dislocated. She dragged herself backwards away from the beast. The rain pounded against her cracked visor. Before she could go for her weapon, it pulled her up of the dirt and threw her across the rooftop. She collided with a protruding skylight, smashing through the window frame and down to the floor below. With a jubilant hiss, it followed her.  
  
***  
  
"We have to do something!" Tiny set the burners for maximum and yanked at the thrust control. He could no longer watch the scene on the monitor. He began the ship's descent from its hiding place high above the clouds.   
  
"No." Anderson ordered, his hands pressed together. He was deep in thought, sitting next to a nervous young Keyop.   
  
"What do you mean, no?" Tiny ejaculated. "He's killin' her!"   
  
"I said we would play this her way. There's nothing we can do in time. We play this her way or not at all. Zoom in Keyop."   
  
"No good." Keyop gripped. "Can't get picture."   
  
Anderson turned to face Jason. Jason nodded solemnly and placed his hand over the weapon controls. "Activate the frigid midget on my signal."   
  
It was Princess choice to set herself up like this. She would either save Mark, or sacrifice herself carrying the ice bomb. The rest sat waiting for the small glimpse of eternity to pass.  
  
***  
  
Princess yelped as she tried to move. She had a busted rib. Broken glass cut into her skin. She seemed to be in an old warehouse storeroom. It was littered with dusty boxes. Her head was spinning in the dark. She could hear the hissing giggles of the creature.   
  
"Mark?" she called out weakly.   
  
She screamed.   
  
Something had sliced through her arm. She felt herself lifted once more and then been carried in the air, held by her neck. She fought feebly as it savagely drove her into the wall. She looked down at her arm. A piece of splintered wood hung deep below her elbow. She numbly felt out for its arm. His arm. The creature was making a sort of choking sound. Laughing. She looked directly into its eyes. Mark's eyes, yet not Marks.   
  
"Mark." She uttered weakly. She felt his wrist. Still there. Things were getting dark. She was about to die. She let the word play on her lips. But no sound came out.  
  
A prisoner in his own body. He screamed and attacked the empty, non-existent walls of his cell. It laughed in return. It let him watch as it strangled the last breath from her body.   
  
Her lips.   
One word.   
  
He felt her hand on his arm. He could do nothing as he killed her.   
  
Her lips.   
One word.  
  
No sound.   
His wrist.   
  
Pressing her hand on his wrist.  
  
***  
  
"Activate Jason." Anderson commanded. Jason paused. Another member of G-Force would be dead. Once again, it was he who had to follow the orders and effectively send one more to their death.   
  
He pressed the button.  
  
***  
  
His wrist.   
Pressing at his cold wrist.   
Her lips.   
Uttering what?   
  
It laughed.  
  
***  
  
Jason sat there mutely. "No signal."   
  
"What!" Demanded Anderson.   
  
"It must have been damaged in the fight."   
  
It had all gone very wrong. Anderson's soul hung heavy. "Prepare to take us down Tiny."  
  
***  
  
It showed him the future. All the possible circumstances he could have had. It showed him the past.  
  
All the possible chances he had missed. She was his lynchpin. She was his sacrifice for the good of the Galaxy. It showed him the present. The last breath leaving her slender body.   
  
Her eyes rolling up into her head.   
  
Her mouth.   
The silent word.   
His wrist.   
The word.   
His body.  
His Galaxy.   
  
His girl.   
  
It was about to take everything.  
  
Anger boiled.   
  
His wrist.   
What was on his wrist?  
  
Mark exploded.  
  
***  
  
The creature yelled in surprise as it was flung back from the girl in a gigantic physical spasm. The girl slumped against the wall and slid to the floor.   
Princess tried to catch a precious piece of breath. She wanted to throw up. She looked at the creature's eyes. They were firm and familiar. Mark.   
  
"Mark?" She asked gently.   
  
The man clutched at his belly in a violent mix of pain and anger. Those eyes returned, briefly and then were replaced with Marks. She noticed a stream of blood start to stream out of his right eye. She saw him shaking.   
  
Fighting.   
  
"T..tt.. t" He began to splutter.   
  
He's fighting it. He's making one last stand. She reached for her belt. She had to stay conscious for a little longer.  
  
He said the word but no sound came out of his mouth.   
T   
You can't say what I don't want to.   
It tickled him with pain.   
Tr   
You and your body are my prison.   
I am your prison. You can't fight me.   
Tra   
Not for long, Mark told it.   
I don't need to fight you for long. Just for one word.   
  
Mark did something he had not done in a long time.   
  
He won.  
  
***  
  
The figure stood like a manikin in front of Princess.   
There was no longer any outward physical sign of a struggle. Then, she noticed a stream of blood bulge out of his mouth.   
Blood was suddenly pouring from every orifice. A battle waging from within. The eyes opened.   
"Transmute!" He demanded.   
  
The voice activated the bracelet.   
She had carefully palmed it onto his wrist whilst on the rooftops.   
The spare bracelet.   
The room seemed to explode into light and fire. S  
he watched in horror as his body squirmed, fighting the transformation. His stomach writhed and he screamed in fury and agony.   
His clothes began to form their birdstyle effect and then with a final cry he began to spit something large and unholy out of his mouth.   
  
Something.   
  
Pinkish green, it had tiny needles protruding out from its sides covered in mucas. They cut into the sides of Mark's mouth as it was forced from his body.   
It began to wither and pulsate as it fell onto the floor.   
  
With all her effort, she pulled herself off the ground and hobbled towards Mark.   
She hurled the Frigid Midget at the creature and pulled Mark away in the opposite direction.   
Semi conscious, Mark instinctively began to force himself to follow her pace, still holding her arm.   
  
"Need pick up. now!" She stammered into her communicator. She ran for the nearest window, they were too high up to survive a fall in their present state but that compared to-  
  
The midget exploded into ice. The room and its contents were transformed into a frozen garden just as the two bodies collided with the window  
  
Control had never been a problem for Mark, but after weeks of being imprisoned, he felt like a baby taking his first steps.  
  
As fast as thought travels, it seemed an eternity waiting. Waiting for his body to pick up and execute his new commands.   
  
Run.   
  
The window broke and they began to drop.   
  
He commanded his arm. Move.   
  
It moved.   
  
Slowly and without finesse, it grabbed onto the window ledge.   
  
He gripped it tightly with one arm and held the now unconscious body of Princess with the other. His fingers could feel the pain of the ice-cold room beyond.   
  
He looked down at the girl in his arms. She never gave up hope on him. She fought to the very end. He smiled. He was the luckiest guy alive. Then he let go. 


	5. Tiny Takes Control

"There!" yelled Jason, leaping up. "That window! Hurry Tiny!"   
  
Tiny watched the screen intently. They were just about visible. It was a small gap between the building were his team-mates were hanging from. The building next to it, which looked like another run down five-story warehouse, was built very close to its counterpart.   
Manoeuvring the Phoenix between the two was not an option. A rope ladder hung from above would be the most appropriate manoeuvre, thought Tiny.   
  
Anderson got up from his seat and stepped towards Tiny's position. He was about to suggest lowering a rope ladder himself when - to his surprise - Tiny suddenly slammed the engines on overdrive and fired the craft forward, catching Anderson off balance.   
  
Anderson grabbed this nearest control panel to steady himself and leaned towards the pilot. Tiny's face was a mask of tension and intense concentration. Anderson looked back at the screen. They were heading directly for the building that sat next to the one from which Mark and Princess hung.   
  
"What are you doing?" he exclaimed. Tiny didn't hear the question. He was subconsciously calculating angles, speed and trajectories through his brain at a fantastic rate. He dropped the craft down to street level and aimed directly at the building ahead.   
  
"Hold on!" the pilot cried, adrenaline pumping through his veins. The engines roared with protest as he pushed them over their limit. Anderson watched with a mixture of horror and bewilderment.  
  
***  
  
He let go. His muscles just gave up and his hands gently slip off the ledge. He and his partner, the unconscious Princess were falling from five stories up. It was certainly enough to even kill a member of G-Force.   
  
Unconscious, he did not here the noise of the Phoenix coming in low. The sound blew out windows on either side of the street. A few late night pedestrians ran for cover dodging the debris and glass that rained onto the street.   
  
Unconscious, Princess did hear the ear splitting crash as the Phoenix's dived into the abandoned building opposite. Nor did she hear the continuous rumble as it split through the centre of the empty property, chewing it from inside.   
  
She was told later, but could not recall, the unforgettable image of the Phoenix bursting through the building's side like a bullet through thin paper. Her body however told the story, with wounds inflicted by dancing shrapnel.   
  
Neither did the two remember the Phoenix colliding with the building they had exited, the nose smashing through the side and coming to a stop just below their descending position, it's undercarriage burners holding the craft horizontal as the two figures landed precisely on the upper hatch.   
  
They remembered none of this daring rescue. Which was a pity, for it was a perfect example of the power and speed of the cerebonic implants - enabling Tiny to see and react to situations faster than a normal human. Sometimes even Anderson had to confess to being in awe of the power gathered from those mighty enhancers. For now, he was just happy to have his children back alive.  
  
***  
  
Zark relaxed on one of his overtly long ten second oil breaks.   
  
He lay back on his reclining table, taking a breather from his job as overseer of the Galactic Federation. Mimicking human behaviour was just a quirk of his model type. He didn't need to have a break, but the robot had evolved in ways that no one had expected. No one really dare complain since Zark did his job with unswerving diligence and skill. If he wasn't broke, why fix it? Besides, his mannerisms brought a warm, friendly character to the facility.   
  
"Well now," Zark said to himself. "All's well that ends well. Mark is being thoroughly checked over for any adverse affects from his ordeal and Princess is well on the road to recovery."   
  
He squirted some oil into his overused joints. "Princess was right when she guessed that transmuting Mark would severe the connection the alien had on his cerebonic implant. It gave Mark back his superhuman powers and control of his body. T  
  
he robot shivered - a mean feat for a metallic ovoid. "What a horrible alien that was! I'm so glad that Mark was able to get rid of it - but it was my ice bomb that actually destroyed the creature!" He chortled to himself. "I do love it when I can be of help to the team!"   
  
He dropped off his bed and wandered back down to his control centre. "G- Force are now on a well earned break. Colonel Cronus and his fine men have stepped in for the meantime to help me keep an eye on planet Spectra! Who knows when Zoltar could strike!" He sighed contentedly. "Soon everything will be back to normal!"  
  
***  
  
Princess winced as she tried to get up from the hospital bed. She had been in the medical facility on Centre Neptune for a few days now. She was bored. There was only so much of the tiny white walled room she could take.   
  
The broken rib was on the mend, as was the arm. Another benefit of G-Force was an increased healing rate. Still hurt like hell. The bruises were pretty much gone.   
  
She was about to try lifting herself off the bed when she was pulled firmly back onto it. Two strong arms wrapped around her chest from behind and held her tightly. She relaxed into the warm embrace.   
  
"You shouldn't be up." She grinned. "Neither should you!" teased the voice. "I've heard you gathered quite a few black marks on your files. Someone said something about insubordination. I told them they must have had the wrong team - and particularly the wrong member!"   
  
She giggled, blushing slightly. "It was a worthy cause."   
  
"I hope I won't experience such bad behaviour under my command. Any such disregard for orders and I'll be forced to set 1-Rover-1 onto any such person."  
  
She twisted herself round to face her assailant. "You wouldn't dare!" she exclaimed with a laugh.  
  
"Try me!" bluffed her commander.   
  
She squeezed him tightly, gripping him as closely as possible. "I thought we had lost you." She gave him a stern look. "Jason's meant to be the loner of the group - not you. We're a team. Please Mark, no more heroics."   
  
He grinned and tickled her nose. "No promises."  
  
***  
  
Anderson watched from the entrance to the gym. It was part of the large sports complex housed in Centre Neptune's, recreation facility. Mark was the single person working out.   
  
The Chief watched as Mark swung down from the hoops and landed gracefully on the mat. His hair and body shimmering - the result of a rigorous workout. He walked over to the near wall collected his towel. Anderson stepped up to the Commander of G-Force.   
  
"You're doing well." Anderson said stiffly. "You'll be pleased to hear the Federation has agreed to returning you to active duty."  
  
"Was there any doubt Chief?" Mark pulled his civilian top back on and grabbed his bag that sat by the edge of the gym.   
  
"They were concerned whether you would be fit to lead after such a terrifying ordeal. We don't get many people coming back from the dead."   
  
Mark grinned inwardly. Was that a joke? "Chief," he began, unsure how to word his next sentence. "I know what happened here between you and the team. I just wanted you to know that I would have done the same thing in your shoes."  
  
Anderson nodded uncomfortably. He held his hand out to the young commander. Mark grasped it firmly. "Good to have you back Mark."  
  
***  
  
Music blared throughout the upper levels of the Centre Neptune Research Centre. G-Force's ready room kicked back for the scientific nature of the base and relaxed on a bed of funk and sport. Jason and Mark were, as usual, trying to outdo each other at ping-pong. Mark was losing, much to Jason's glee.   
  
"Need a tune up, Commander?" He gloated as he took another game.   
  
In the far corner, Keyop hammed down his favourite drum beat to Princess's funky guitar riff. Both happily ensconced in their world of music and rhythm.   
  
Tiny sat in the middle of the room, interacting with no one but the batch of Space Burgers he was eating. Contentedly, he watched Princess and Keyop play. Good sounds and a good meal was really all a guy like Tiny craved.   
  
"Hey Keyop, turn down the noise!" Mark demanded. "You're putting me off my game!" Keyop and Princess stopped playing.   
  
"Isn't that my role, Commander?" flirted Princess with surprising candidness.   
  
"Lovely dovey Mark!" declared Keyop with a high pitched laugh, and then preceded to play a little drum solo to compliment the remark - to which he received a pin-pong ball to the head.   
  
Zark's face appeared on the monitor with perfect timing. "G-Force assemble on the Phoenix immediately! We have an attack from planet Spectra!"   
  
They rushed to the room's lift and within seconds were on their way down to the hanger bays. G-Force was to begin another, rather exciting, mission into outer space. 


End file.
